City Moves for 13 January 2016 | Who’s switching jobs January 13, 2016 Mount Anvil Mount Anvil, a residential-led central London developer has announced the appointment of Hilary Wells as its first people director. Hilary joins from wine and spirits merchant Berry Bros & Rudd, a family-owned business dating back to 1698 with a turnover of more than £200m, where she led the transformation of the company’s approach [...]
Alternative finance can unlock the potential of small developers to tackle Britain’s housing crisis January 13, 2016 Hearing that the Prime Minister plans to open up public sector land for small-scale developments was a great way to start the year. Gaining access to land is a major hurdle that keeps too many small property development companies out of the market. All initiatives to correct that should be welcomed. Yet lack of land [...]
Proposed national insurance tax rule could be easily dodged, warns Chartered Institute of Taxation January 12, 2016 A representative body for tax professionals today warned that proposed rules designed to tighten up claims for national insurance reductions could be too easy to dodge. The Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) cautioned that HM Revenue & Customs’ (HMRC) plans to stop limited companies where the director is the sole employee from claiming Employment Allowance [...]
Bloopers, jargon and cliches: The grammar and language errors businesses should avoid January 12, 2016 When you proofread for a living, as I do, you notice linguistic and grammatical faux pas instinctively. However, we are all influenced by the language in our lives more than we think. From fellow commuters on the train reading a newspaper, book, or smartphone, to you sitting at your desk reading emails, language is all [...]
Direct Line Insurance Group share price rises as it reveals its estimated costs of the storms of up to £140m, while PwC predicts a mixed bag for premiums this year January 12, 2016 Direct Line Insurance Group today revealed that it estimated that this winter’s floods would cost it between £110m and £140m in claims across both its home and commercial divisions. The company stressed that these figures were estimates only and that an actual amount for insured losses could not be given with certainty for some while. After [...]
As he delivers his final State of the Union address, has Obama proved a failure as President? January 12, 2016 Kate Andrews, head of communications at the Adam Smith Institute, says Yes. As a senator, Obama promised “hope” and “change” on the campaign trail in 2007. But as President, he has presided over some of the worst gridlock Washington has seen. His pledge to unite the parties was quickly voided when he pushed through the [...]
City Moves for 12 January 2016 | Who’s switching jobs January 12, 2016 RPC Consulting Chris Carson has joined RPC Consulting – the insurance consultancy arm of RPC – as a partner from PwC. Chris has over 28 years’ experience in the insurance sector and while at PwC, he led the Big Four accountancy firm’s insurance advisory practice across EMEA. Chris has worked at board level with Direct [...]
Brighton and Bristol and Edinburgh top the list as 2015 rents surge in almost every UK region January 12, 2016 Strong housing demand boosted rental prices in almost every region of the country last year, new research shows, despite a slowdown over the last three months. Brighton and Bristol recorded the highest increase in rents last year, up 18 per cent respectively, while rents in both Edinburgh and Newcastle rose by 16 per cent. London [...]
The City remembers David Bowie’s bonds January 11, 2016 City folk were as stunned as all Londoners by the death of David Bowie, announced yesterday. The iconic musician will stay cemented in history for his exceptionally inventive work that spanned six decades. Bowie’s innovation was evident both in and outside the studio – and even in the world of finance. The Brixton-born legend turned [...]
Francois Hollande’s economic adviser Laurence Boon joins Axa January 11, 2016 One of French President Francois Hollande's economic advisers has been snapped up by French insurance giant Axa. Laurence Boone, who was critical of Hollande's socialist government before being appointed, controversially joined Hollande's team of advisers in June 2014. She left a post at Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Research to do so. “I am absolutely delighted that Laurence [...]